Singapore otters a hit overseas

Fans across the globe ask interest groups where they can see the creatures when they visit Singapore
Nur Syahindah Ishak The New Paper 14 Jan 19;

National Geographic photographer Stefano Unterthiner, 48, from Italy has been to more than 30 countries and photographed exotic wildlife such as the Komodo dragon, European bison and brown bear.

When he learnt about Singapore's Bishan otters, he flew here in January last year for over three weeks.

He is not the only foreigner to be intrigued by our otters.

Otter groups here told The New Paper that they get messages from fans across the globe asking where to find the animals if they were to visit Singapore.

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Spike in fish prices likely to continue in run-up to Chinese New Year

Bad weather, rising demand, Malaysia's seafood export ban cited as reasons for higher prices of popular fishes
Rei Kurohi Straits Times 14 Jan 19;

A recent spike in the price of fish that is likely to continue with Chinese New Year just weeks away was partly the result of recent bad weather, which caused some shortages among Singapore's regular suppliers, fish sellers told The Straits Times.

Mr Lim Choon Yau, who represents wholesaler Song Fish Dealer, said fishermen in countries like Indonesia and Thailand have reported poor catches and unpredictable weather preventing them from fishing in recent weeks.

He said: "The price of Chinese pomfret has risen from about $30 to as much as $50 per kg. If the weather continues to be bad, who knows how high the price could rise?"

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Indonesia: Facebook post leads N. Sumatra police to alleged poacher

Rizal Harahap and Apriadi Gunawan The Jakarta Post 13 Jan 19;

Authorities in Riau and North Sumatra have arrested a man allegedly involved in illegal poaching after he posted a video of himself slaughtering an endangered bird on social media.

The Riau Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) joined hands with the Kuantan Singingi (Kuansing) Police to track down and apprehend Arhedi, 29, for allegedly killing a hornbill on Friday evening.

Arhedi, who is originally from Lebak, Banten, is a rubber plantation worker in Gunung Toar subdistrict, Kuansing, Riau. The police are still on the hunt for his coworker, OG, who allegedly took down the bird with a slingshot.

A video of Arhedi chopping up the hornbill went viral on social media and alerted the police.

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Best of our wild blogs: 13 Jan 19

Flew In Visitors (12 Jan 2019)
Beetles@SG BLOG

Butterfly of the Month - January 2019
Butterflies of Singapore

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Why Singapore is heating up twice as fast as the rest of the world

Extreme heat, combined with the island’s high humidity, could be life-threatening, the programme Why It Matters discovers.
Desmond Ng and Tang Hui Huan Channel NewsAsia 13 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: The recent spells of hot weather that Singaporeans have been experiencing may not be just temporary heatwaves.

The island is heating up twice as fast as the rest of the world - at 0.25 degrees Celsius per decade - according to the Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS). It is almost 1 deg C hotter today than in the 1950s.

What is even grimmer news – Singapore’s maximum daily temperatures could reach 35 to 37 deg C by year 2100, if carbon emissions continue to rise at the same rate, warned Dr Muhammad Eeqmal Hassim, senior research scientist with the MSS Centre for Climate Research Singapore.

Other countries already experience hotter temperatures than this - but the reason this spells trouble for Singapore, is that humidity is high here all year round,

This could lead to potentially deadly situations, as the programme Why It Matters found out.

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Singapore needs to relook way it uses resources if it's to become a zero-waste nation: Masagos

Calvin Yang Straits Times 12 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE - Singapore has to relook the way it uses resources if it is to achieve its vision of becoming a zero-waste nation, said Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli on Saturday (Jan 12).

If done right, the country will also be able to create new economic opportunities for local businesses and jobs for Singaporeans, added Mr Masagos, who was speaking at the launch of Singapore's Year Towards Zero Waste at Our Tampines Hub.

The year-long campaign aims to raise awareness of waste issues here and the need to treasure precious resources.

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Wild boar killed in accident outside Waterway Point in Punggol

Channel NewsAsia 12 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: A wild boar died after being run over outside Waterway Point in Punggol on Saturday (Jan 12).

Animal welfare group Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) received a call at about 11.55am alerting them to two wild boars near Waterway Point.

One was reported to be in the car park, while the other had died after being run over.

When officers from ACRES arrived at the scene, they found only the carcass of the dead wild boar. The carcass was subsequently cleared by the National Environment Agency, ACRES said.

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2 Asian leopard cats abandoned at Bukit Batok, rescued by ACRES

Channel NewsAsia 12 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: Two critically endangered Asian leopard cats were rescued by an animal welfare group after being found abandoned in a carrier at Bukit Batok West last month.

Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) said it received a call at about 10am on Dec 20 from a member of the public, claiming to have found two Asian leopard cats abandoned in a carrier at Bukit Batok West Avenue 6.

The cats were picked up by ACRES in the afternoon.

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Indonesia: Riau resident accused of igniting forest fire after throwing cigarette butt

Rizal Harahap The Jakarta Post 12 Jan 19;

Dumai Police arrested a resident for allegedly starting a forest fire in Purnama subdistrict in Dumai, Riau, after he threw a lighted cigarette butt onto peatland.

Police chief Comr. Restika P. Nainggolan said the suspect, identified as 49-year-old Sabri, had attempted to put out the fire when the fire brigade arrived.

"Apparently he is one of the land owners," Restika said on Friday.

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$1m prize for innovative solutions for clean energy, sustainability

Cheryl Teh Straits Times 12 Jan 19;

Local non-profit organisation Temasek Foundation has launched its Liveability Challenge this year, issuing a global call for companies to come up with innovative solutions for clean energy and sustainability in tropical cities.

Its Ecosperity arm is offering a $1 million prize - which it claims is the biggest in Asia for such a competition - to the winning company, which will go towards project development, crowdfunding campaigns and mentoring opportunities.

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From fighting diabetes to food waste, start-ups cook up new ideas for food

Tang See Kit Channel NewsAsia 12 Jan 19;

SINGAPORE: Affecting more than 420 million people globally, diabetes has been described as one of the world’s fastest growing chronic diseases and for Alan Phua, it is one that he lost both his grandmothers to.

So when Verleen Goh, his business partner and a trained food scientist, suggested developing a product that’s not only diabetes-friendly but can also help with prevention, he agreed.

The product they envisioned will make starchy white rice “healthier” by lowering its glycemic index (GI), which is a measure of how a carbohydrate-containing food raises blood glucose level. White rice, a staple of meals here in Singapore and the rest of Asia, has a high GI value that is deemed unhealthy for diabetics or those trying to keep their blood sugar at a healthy level.

After three years of research and development, the founders of Alchemy Foodtech have turned that idea into reality.

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Panic as family finds 3m-long python in toilet, then struggles to find agency to help remove snake

Adeline Tan The New Paper 11 Jan 19;

When his wife's screams woke him up at 6.45am, he found a slithery intruder in their Housing Board maisonette in Eunos.

What ensued was a two-hour drama where the family had to deal with a 3m reticulated python in their home while waiting for help to arrive.

Recalling the incident, which happened on Dec 30, the resident, who wanted to be known only as Mr Goh, said his wife had run into their bedroom to wake him.

"She said there was a huge snake in the toilet. I thought she was exaggerating or had mistaken something else for a snake," he told The New Paper.

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